


A Happy Family

by lachoy



Category: Captive Prince - C. S. Pacat
Genre: Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-08
Updated: 2018-03-08
Packaged: 2019-03-25 15:24:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13837599
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lachoy/pseuds/lachoy
Summary: Damen had always known him and Laurent would one day start a family together. He just didn't expect it in the form of Nicaise, a foster child who needed more help than he ever thought a kid would need.





	A Happy Family

**Author's Note:**

> There will be no graphic depictions of sexual abuse, but it will be talked about. The underage aspect will be mostly in the past, but there will be events in this story that could be upsetting to some. I will put warnings as needed before chapters. Laurent and Nicaise are both CSA survivors here and Nicaise is a scared and angry child. This is a story about healing and family.

Damen could remember the subtle question Laurent had passed his way after their sixth month of dating. Would he ever want to have children? It had been a serious question and Damen had been so overjoyed to hear it because that was Laurent's way of telling him he took their relationship seriously. Being with Laurent meant you had to read between the lines, which was something he had never been very good at. Something he had to learn. When he didn't give an answer right away, the look on his face had given away his excitement. 'You look like a dog who just got told it's time for a walk,' Laurent had said in his own affectionate way. It had taken a long time to even become Laurent's friend, let alone his lover. Laurent didn't let people in very often and Damen had struggled over and over to even get Laurent to look his way. He could remember the very day Laurent had given him a smile (March 23rd).

What had followed after Laurent's question was a long talk. Family meant a lot to both of them for different reasons. Damen had good memories of his father and had always wanted to be like him. Laurent's immediate family had died in a sudden accident, where he had been the only survivor. Laurent wanted a family to experience something he lost and Damen found it an honor to be considered. Adoption seemed like the best choice and Laurent said he still wasn't certain how many children he would like yet. Damen wanted a big family, but Laurent hadn't been sold on the idea. Which was fine. A family, any size, with Laurent was all Damen knew he needed.

When they got married after their third year of dating, Laurent had said it wasn't a good idea to rush starting their family. Damen had agreed. Laurent had just won over his family's law firm from his uncle and Damen was busy struggling to make a business partnership with his half brother work. Children didn't seem like a good fit for a marriage that had just begun and they were preoccupied with too much. No, they couldn't handle a kid. That much was certain.

This was why after a half a year of marriage, Damen didn't expect to see Laurent sitting on the couch with a barely teenager as he came home after a long day of work.

"Oh good, you're home. Damen, this is Nicaise Durand. Nicaise, this is my husband Damen Akielos. I met Nicaise from a case and invited him for dinner."

Nicaise was small with a beautiful face that was marred by the scowl that he had on. His brown curls framed his delicate features and contrasted well with his pale skin and blue eyes. Damen noticed he had earrings, just two small hoops in his ear. He looked twelve at best, especially with his chubby cheeks.

Damen smiled, still unsure of why Laurent had brought a child for dinner, and especially without warning. He opened his mouth to introduce himself, wanting to be polite. Nicaise took it upon himself to say something first.

"You're fucking giant. Look at you!"

That had been the last thing Damen expected to hear and he sputtered. "Excuse me?"

Laurent was unaffected, as he usually tried to be. He always tried to limit his reactions to anything. "I heard you had horrible grades, but I didn't know basic etiquette went beyond your scope, too. Usually this is when you would say hello?"

Nicaise frowned. "You introduced us so I don't have to say anything. Anyway, when are we going to eat? You said dinner and all I've been doing since you brought me here was just listening to you talk on and on all day."

Laurent looked at Damen. "I was thinking we order out. I usually cook, but I didn't have the time today with our guest. Anything you're particularly craving?"

"Chinese," Nicaise quickly suggested which then became a list of everything he wanted. Damen wasn't sure if a kid as small as Nicaise could even eat that much. Not even Damen could and he was infamous for his bottomless stomach.

"When I meant dinner, I meant for the night. Not dinner for the rest of your week. Pick one thing," Laurent said with a look in his eye that showed he was amused. Damen didn't think he understood why. He mostly thought this kid seemed like a huge brat who needed some real work on his attitude. What did Laurent see in him? Obviously something because Laurent was usually a good judge. This is what he would keep trying to remind himself for the night.

"I'm a teenager. We eat all the time. With all this money, you think you'd be a little charitable. But fine, if you want to be a stingy cheapskate. "

It was uncomfortable as Laurent ordered the food because it left Damen alone to try to talk to Nicaise. As much as he wanted a family, he had never been good with kids. He didn't know how to talk to them or relate to them. You put a baby in his arms and he suddenly didn't know how to use them. Nicaise also didn't look like he wanted to talk, with the way he glared at Damen. He wished he had a moment alone with Laurent just to ask what this was all about. Laurent never invited people over, let alone children. He also didn't think he saw the appeal much in this one. Nicaise looked ready to commit murder with that glare of his and Damen had to admit that it was just a little terrifying. If a grown man looked at him like this, Damen would just give a stern look back and straighten up his shoulders. But you couldn't do that with a kid so it left him unsure of what to do. He also didn't know what he could have done to offend Nicaise so much.

When Laurent finished it was a relief as he seemed to be filling in the awkward silences, which wasn't his usual role. Laurent didn't talk much and Damen was left to be the outgoing one. That was their roles and it was comfortable. Having it reversed was strange.

"So how was your day?" Laurent asked Damen.

"Oh, decent. Kastor and I still can't agree on that one deal. Kastor says we should argue for more, but I think if we ask for too much then we lose the offer altogether." Nicaise started staring off into space and Damen realized he was being rude. Work talk wasn't thrilling conversation for a kid. "I work with my brother Kastor in our family business. We're hoping to expand so it's been a little stressful."

"Laurent told me what you do. All he does is talk about you."

"Saying I’m married and telling you what my husband does for work isn't the same as him encompassing our entire conversation."

"Anyway. What grade are you in?" This was the kind of stuff you usually asked kids, Damen thought. And kids wanted to talk about school. Or at least complain about it.

But Nicaise suddenly looked more irritated, slouching down on the couch and crossing his arms across his chest. "I'm in the fifth grade."

So then he was around eleven? This little fact made his language a lot worse, though. What kind of case had this kid been involved in? Laurent usually dealt with businesses and it made him curious how Nicaise tied into that. "Wow, so then you're going to junior high next year, right? Excited?"

"I don't give a shit about school. God, you're all so boring. Don't you talk about anything good or do you just bore each other all day talking about jobs and school?"

Damen was at a loss for how to reply to that and he looked to Laurent for aide. Somehow he had been alone with him for who knew how long so he clearly knew how to talk to this kid.

"Unfortunately that's what being an adult is. What do you want to talk about since you apparently have all the conversational experience in this room?" He simply looked to Nicaise, waiting for an answer and Nicaise just wilted.

"I didn't say I talked better. Just that you guys were boring."

"Ah, my mistake then. Here I thought you might thrill us. Oh well." Nicaise flipped him off and Damen waited for Laurent to say something. Anything. "We can start to set the table then. Maybe you'll come up with something to talk about."

"I gotta piss like a race horse. Where's the bathroom?"

Laurent gave him the directions and as soon as they were alone, Damen hissed to Laurent, "What is this about?"

"What? I invited a guest to dinner. You do it all the time."

"I invite friends, coworkers, family. Not the spawn of a demon. Where did you pick him up from and where are his parents?"

"Nobody knows. He's been in and out of foster homes for the past six years. They say he has behavioral problems."

"Oh, couldn't imagine where they got that idea." Damen sighed. "Why didn't you at least warn me? I would have liked to prepare myself for having a mini sailor in my room. He swears more than I do!"

"I did," Laurent said in that tone that made Damen know when to shut up. "It's not my fault you don't check your phone as often as you should. I bet the battery is dead, too."

Damen took his phone from his pocket and sure enough, it was dead. He pocketed it without saying anything else about it. "Okay, so. Just dinner?"

"We'll talk about it after I take Nicaise back."

"Talk about what?!"

Damen knew he wouldn't get an answer from Laurent and definitely knew when Nicaise chose that exact moment to come back, exclaiming about the fancy soap they kept. Laurent just led him away to show him where they kept the plates and silverware. He complained the whole time he was setting the table up, unhappy with being expected to do any work in someone else's home.

"I'm a guest! Don't you know anything about that? You don't make me do work."

"And I just paid for your dinner so I think you can at least do this for us."

While Damen still wasn't used to how Nicaise spoke to them, it was impressive how Laurent handled him. No matter what he said, Laurent never seemed to even blink at his attitude. It had always been what he was good at, but Damen always thought he would be amazed by his husband no matter how many years passed. He had seen Laurent with children before, too. As cold as he could be, it always seemed to fly out the window with children. He knew how to connect to them and while Damen wasn't sure if he was exactly connecting to this Nicaise, he was at least getting along with him better than Damen was. During dinner, any attempt at conversations on his part were mocked by Nicaise. He didn’t hide his dislike of Damen. It left him feeling awkward and made dinner seem more tense. Nicaise shot daggers in his glare and Damen was glad he didn't have to sit near him. It wouldn't have been surprising if he had felt the need to stab him.

Nicaise had obviously been hungry and he finished his food faster than either of them. "Man, that was good. The last place I was at, there was like six other kids and they fed us shit. I haven't had Chinese in forever!"

"I'm glad you approve. Does that mean I get a thank you?"

Nicaise rolled his eyes and said in a sickly sweet tone: "Thank you ever so much, Mr. Akielos. Want me to put on a skirt and curtsy for you, too?"

"No, the thank you is enough. I would have you help us with the dishes, but I promised to get you back before eight. Damen, I'll be back to help you with the dishes."

"Don't worry." Damen smiled at Nicaise, still trying to be friendly. "Pleasure to meet you, Nicaise."

"Hah, yeah. Real pleasure." Nicaise was out the door and as soon as it shut, Damen was leaning against the counter, feeling more exhausted after just an hour and a half of that kid than the whole work day had done to him. Laurent barely did invite people over and his social circle wasn't exactly big. It was rare for him to spend much time with anybody and so Damen had no idea what part of Nicaise interested Laurent. But at least that stressful evening was over and when Laurent came home, Damen could laugh at him and ask if he lost his mind inviting a kid like that for dinner.

The dishes were done by the time Laurent came back from returning Nicaise from wherever he came from and Damen had already taken to relaxing on their couch with some dumb action movie he could get lost in and not have to think about very much. Laurent sat down next to him and leaned against him, head on his shoulder. Instinctively, Damen wrapped an arm around his shoulders and kissed the top of his head.

"We need to talk," Laurent said and Damen felt his stomach drop.

"Nobody ever wants to hear that," Damen groaned. "What did I do?"

"It's nothing you did. But it is about Nicaise. What did you think of him?"

"Is this a trick question? What do you think I thought? I thought he seemed like a nightmare. What kind of kid acts like that?" When Laurent went quiet for a few seconds, Damen didn't worry. This wasn't unusual for him. But then those seconds grew and that was when Damen did start to feel anxious. "Dear? What's going on?"

Laurent sat up, looking him in the eyes. What surprised Damen was how earnest he looked right now and this wasn't a face he saw often. He was taken aback by it, his heart beating rapidly from not only nerves, but love. As rare as it was, seeing it reminded Damen all over again why he had married Laurent.

"Damen, I told you how he's been in and out of foster homes, correct?" At Damen's nod, Laurent continued. "I want to adopt him."

"What?! Him?! Laurent, are you insane? You did hear him, right? He's got some serious problems and if we weren't ready to adopt a child that was probably better behaved than he is then how can we take care of him?"

"I've thought about that. Jord was a terrific hire on my part and a very important asset to the firm. There is still a lot on my shoulders but it's nothing I can't manage. I know things with Kastor are hectic, you two butt heads more than agree, but if I have to do most of this then so be it. Nicaise needs a home."

Any argument that Damen had left him when it was obvious how much this meant to Laurent. For the cold man, this was practically wearing his heart on his sleeve. "You're really serious about this, aren't you?"

"I do not make a decision lightly. I’ve thought this through and I wouldn’t do something if I didn’t know I could do it. I wouldn’t hurt a child by being impulsive.” Laurent held his head higher and then continued. “I don’t expect you to make your decision now. This is a big change to both of our lives and I know he rattled you.”

“That’s an understatement.” But Damen knew that Nicaise probably hadn’t had an easy life. He didn’t need to know details to imagine how difficult a life could be for a kid if he had been in and out of so many homes. Though he wondered how many of those situations could have been part of Nicaise’s doing. He liked to piss people off, it seemed. Yet to take a child like that into their home? He knew Laurent was capable, he had shown that today. It was himself he wasn’t sure of. Laurent was right, work was hard for Damen right now. With the death of his father a couple of years back, he had lost the mediator for him and Kastor. Their relationship had always been difficult, Kastor had been the son of a mistress and it had made him bitter. Damen tried, but Kastor didn’t try nearly as hard. Every day was a battle. Some days he came home mad and tired, wishing he could just tell his older brother to get over himself. 

So to come home to a child like Nicaise? Would he have the energy to give Nicaise what he needed?

“I don’t know if I could do it,” Damen admitted. “I’m not...” He struggled for words to explain himself. “I do not understand Nicaise like you seem to. The way he acts and talks, it bothered me. And irritated me, I can’t deny that.”

“That’s because you are good and that is something Nicaise should experience. I don’t think he’s had much good in his life.”

That was enough to make all of Nicaise’s ill behavior from earlier leave his mind. Laurent often told him he was a pushover. “How did you meet him?”

“One of the recent cases. Nicaise was a witness. Very smart about it, too. He was paid to shut up by the defendant and then paid twice that to confess what he knew. I’ve gotten to know him well.”

“You never talked about him.”

“You know I can’t talk about cases,” Laurent said. “As I said, there’s no need to decide now. This is something important and I wouldn’t want you to be impulsive. Think about it. But don’t worry so much about what you think you can’t do. You’re good at a lot of things and don’t grin at me like that, you egomaniac.”

But Damen did keep grinning and then kissed Laurent softly. “I will think about it. I promise.”

Laurent nodded. “That is all that I ask for. Thank you.”

Long after Laurent finally fell asleep (it always took him a while to), Damen was still awake which was a rarity. Sleep came to him easily. But he had so much to think about and that kept his mind busy. He thought of Nicaise and he wondered that even if he did say yes to adopting him if Nicaise would accept. Obviously there was something about him that was offended by Damen. Maybe it was because he was a stranger? Shyness? Nothing about Nicaise came off as shy, though. It did bother him if Nicaise simply didn’t like him. Damen was used to people liking him.

There was one thing for sure, though. His sense of justice was strong and leaving a child to a difficult life? It did bother him. He was an adult, he was here to protect children. If a child did need him then why should he let anything hold him back? And he had Laurent, who was obviously more than capable of handling Nicaise. His heart knew what was right to do and he reasoned to himself that maybe he could get to know him better. Like he had with Laurent. It had never been easy and yet here he was, married to him.

Still, he would think about it a little more. Laurent had given him time and so Damen would take it.

\- - - - 

When he saw Nikandros, his best friend, that day for lunch Damen knew there was no easy way to break the news he was considering adopting a child. Luckily for him, Nikandros was used to his best friend’s shenanigans.

“I think you would make a great father, but really? Just a few months ago you talked about how you didn’t think you were ready for a kid and now you’re considering adopting some little punk?”

“He’s eleven. I don’t think punk is the word to use. He’s just got...a potty mouth. Listen, I know it sounds crazy. I still can’t believe all of this has happened in less than a day. Laurent really wants this, though.”

“This isn’t like a dog, Damen.”

“Laurent would never want a dog.”

“Of course he wouldn’t love dogs. Not surprising at all.” Nikandros took to rubbing his temples like he often did with Damen. “God I’ve been dealing with you for too long. I think I’ll take back to sneaking in to that abandoned house over you wanting to adopt a child.”

Damen remembered that. He had wanted to see if it was haunted and had pressured Nikandros into it, who had kept saying it was a bad idea. They’d gone and then Damen’s foot fell through a floorboard and he’d broken his ankle because of it. Him and Nikandros had been grounded for well over a month. “At least this one doesn’t affect you too much.”

“It doesn’t? I won’t be Uncle Nik?”

“Well, other than that, I mean. You won’t have to deal with it every day.”

“Damen, we can be old men and your problems will always be mine too.” Then he nodded and said, “But I think if anybody could raise a problem child, it would be you. You did wonders with Laurent.”

“And remember, you said he was a bad idea.”

“Listen, I still see a blond and start to panic. I’ve gotten into enough trouble because of pretty blonds. I can’t even date then now because of you. But if it pleases you, yes. I was wrong about Laurent. But I’ve been right every other time!” He took a bite of his lunch and when he finished, he continued. “Try to get to know this kid better, I guess. You can win him over. We both know you’ve already made up your mind anyway.”

Damen knew it was true, he had. “I’ve only met him once and we might adopt him.”

“I’ll say this much and don’t you dare tell him I said it, but if Laurent thinks it’s important you do it then it probably is. He’s the brains of the relationship for a reason. Like I said, just talk to him again. If Laurent loves him so much then he would probably agree to another dinner. Turn on the charm.”

“If only charming kids was as easy as charming adults.”

**Author's Note:**

> My second Captive Prince story and another one about Nicaise. Nicaise is my favorite and a character I love to write about so I can give him happy endings. This isn't prewritten and I admit, I'm still not 100% sure of how everything will play out but this is a story that has been on my mind for ages.


End file.
